PLYMOUTH JUNIOR GOLF ASSOCIATION: Learning golf one course at a time

Thursday

Aug 14, 2014 at 8:00 AM

PLYMOUTH – The golf industry has taken plenty of hits in recent years. Rounds being played at courses have dropped and the youth of today are disappearing from the game. A pair of local pros are working to change that, at least in Plymouth, through a junior golf summer tour that provides aspiring young golfers with the opportunity to compete in a tournament setting.

Rob Duca

PLYMOUTH – The golf industry has taken plenty of hits in recent years. Rounds being played at courses have dropped and the youth of today are disappearing from the game. A pair of local pros are working to change that, at least in Plymouth, through a junior golf summer tour that provides aspiring young golfers with the opportunity to compete in a tournament setting.

Dave Moore, head professional at Squirrel Run, and Don Daley, head pro at Atlantic Country Club, have teamed up since 2012 to operate the Plymouth Junior Golf Association summer tour, which consists of six nine-hole events. More than 75 youngsters are competing this summer, with approximately 25 at each event, in four different age groups. Competitions are held for 12-and-under, 13-year-olds, 14-year-olds and 15- to 17-year-olds.

“We have such great public golf courses in Plymouth and I have to commend the owners for giving these juniors the chance to play,” Moore said.

Players are awarded trophies for finishing in first, second and third place, and a Player of the Year trophy is awarded for each age group at the end of the season.

“Golf has been very good to me so I look at this as a way to pay it forward,” Moore said. “Giving juniors the opportunity to play is the key. If all they have is the practice range, the clinics and instruction, eventually we’re going to lose them to lacrosse or soccer.

“We need to give them not only opportunities, but affordable opportunities, where they can go out and enjoy the sport.”

But Moore also wants the kids to enjoy the experience, so one of the tour’s rules is that no player can score higher than double the par on a hole. “We want to keep it fun,” he said.

In the process, he hopes to introduce a new generation to the game, while teaching valuable life lessons.

“There’s a lot more being taught than golf,” he said. “It’s about juniors getting along, keeping score. There’s no parent or referee involved. While they’re competing, golf is the one sport where we help our competitors. If there’s a lost ball, everyone is looking for it. There’s so much more to learn than golf.”